Where to get a sled?

[dalius]

Where can one find a ski sled to rent or buy in the Seattle area? A friend of mine is heading into some huts over the weekend and is looking for a sled to ease the pain. I know that buying a cheap plastic sled and rigging up some slings is always an option, but he's looking for a better option.

[DirtyHarry]

Polaris or Arctic Cat?

[dalius]

Polaris or Arctic Cat?

 

Ha! Sorry, not a snowmobile. I'm talking about an actual sled that you pull behind you.

[mattp]

I've never used one for anything but melting snow at a basecamp or burying as a deadman, but my impression is that virtually all of my friends who have sledded loads in Alaska or somewhere used a cheap sled like you'd get at Fred Meyer. Sometimes they put pvc pipes on the pull straps, and attach them to a hip belt taken from an old pack. For melting snow, get a dark color.

 

I once saw a super-duper one manufactured by some ski outfit in Utah, and it had a fancy harness system as well as a top closure kind of like an extra huge and stubby rocket box, along with some fins to minimize side-slip. The guys pulling it said it was in fact better than a Fred Meyer model, but they also said they wouldn't have shelled out the $ for it if they were not sponsored.

[Geek_the_Greek]

I have heard of many trips relying on the $2 Krazy Karpet - essentially, a thin plastic square mat with two cut-out handles that weighs little and rolls up like a thermarest. However, a web search only turned up Canadian sites, so maybe it's not a product available down here? Maybe the price is too low to satisfy American tastes...

 

On an unrelated note, a search for Krazy Karpets turned up a couple of amusing tobogganing ("or sledding for all the Americans out there") tales:

from the McGill (Montreal, Canada) Tribune

[robert]

Fred Meyer, Target, WalMart, probably Big 5 too, but certainly the major discounters.

 

If your friend wants something he or she can use again and again look into a drag bag. We used Wild Things bags in Alaska. They worked great.

Edited January 23, 2006 by robert

[JoshK]

I have no experience with sleds other than nearly killing myself on them as a kid but I have heard from manny that the type of terrain you will cross will have a bearing. Apparently if you are on almost all terrain where you are going up or down the fall line, you can get away with a cheap sled. I've heard that some sort of side slip resistent rails or something is helpful if you will be dragging the sled on traverses where the fall line is perpendicular to you. Without some sort of side slip stability the sled will constantly want to pull downhill. This is just what I have heard.

[Mal_Con]

Mountainsmith used to make the sled in question and they rented them at Marmot, expensive and heavy but worked well. Someone bought the dies and is still making them. I made one out of a k-mart special, old rei pack waist band, kids bike seat and some old cx ski poles. Like most I used it to haul gear or kids on ski trips. You need a skeg to traverse and pickets ice up unless treated. If you are just going up an alsaka glaicier the toy sleds and rope work fine as does a haul bag. You need stiff poles for downhill.

[dalius]

Thanks for all the info. I called marmot and they've got the exact one you were talking about. $24 for 2-4 days. Not bad if you only need it for a couple day outing.